LSU players charged, suspended over bar fight

BATON ROUGE, La. - LSU quarterback Jordan Jefferson and teammate Joshua Johns were released on $5,000 bond each Friday in connection with a bar fight that injured four people.

The two players turned themselves in after police obtained arrest warrants on felony charges of second-degree battery, stemming from their alleged roles in a fight outside Shady's bar in Baton Rouge on Aug. 19. The players also have been suspended indefinitely by the school.

"Today is a sad day for the city of Baton Rouge. Today is a sad day for Louisiana State University, the LSU alumni and the countless fans that follow the Tiger football program," Baton Rouge police chief Dewayne White said. "It is also a sad day for the Baton Rouge police department."

White said the evidence in the case would be forwarded to the East Baton Rouge Parish district attorney for review.

He described the evidence as "numerous interviews of witnesses, including victims and players implicated in the incident ... as well as video evidence of certain individuals, all of whom were present at the scene."

Attorney Shannon Fay, an associate of the players' lead defense attorney, Nathan Fisher, said their effort to disprove the accusations against the players would continue.

"This is an ongoing case, and we will continue to diligently defend our clients, who we believe are innocent," Fay said.

While that effort continues, Jefferson, a starter, and Johns, a reserve linebacker, will miss fourth-ranked LSU's season opener on Sept. 3 against Oregon at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. They could miss many more games than that.

"We will continue to cooperate with the authorities in an effort to find out exactly what took place during the incident," LSU coach Les Miles said. "As sad as this incident is, it's important that we learn from this and that we take away a valuable lesson. This has weighed on all of us. It's time for us to come together as a team and focus on what we are here to do."

A police report says a 19-year-old woman named Victoria Long said she witnessed several LSU players beating one of the alleged victims and saw Jefferson kick that man in the face.

Four people were treated and released at a hospital in the hours after the fight, and police have said one person had three fractured vertebrae, injuries serious enough to warrant felony charges.

Two witnesses who work at the bar told The Associated Press that the players did not throw the first punch, but added that once the melee began, it was difficult to see who hit whom, and could not verify the extent to which Jefferson and Johns were involved.

Shady's door manager Jordan Neldare, who said he witnessed the fight, said he noticed that Jefferson removed himself from the brawl before it was over, and was standing alone near the bar's entrance, looking upset.

White said Jefferson and Johns have cooperated fully in the investigation.

Police also identified offensive lineman Chris Davenport, and receiver Jarvis Landry as people of interest in the fight, but did not comment on their status Friday. White said the police would not be making any more public comments about the merits or facts of the case, "for the purposes of protecting the integrity of an ongoing and continuing investigation into to this matter."

Each of the four players were interviewed by investigators Tuesday. On Wednesday, police executed a search warrant of Jefferson's apartment and took 49 pairs of shoes, along with a DNA swab.

Under team orders, LSU players have not discussed the fight publicly since it happened.

Jefferson's suspension means that Jarrett Lee will likely be LSU's starter in the team's opener against Oregon, CBSSports.com's Tom Fornelli reports.

Jefferson, a senior, guided LSU to an 11-2 record last season. He is 20-7 as a starter, but the team ranked last in passing in the Southeastern Conference last season, with 155.6 yards per game.

Still, LSU has numerous key players returning and was expected to compete for Southeastern Conference and national championships this season.

The team's success now will ride on how the players are able to regroup from a series of setbacks this offseason, one of which occurred Thursday when LSU suspended starting wide receiver Russell Shepard for violating school and NCAA codes that pertain to discussing NCAA inquiries with teammates who are also scheduled to be interviewed on the same matter.

LSU plans to apply for Shepard's reinstatement, but it is unclear how long that will take. The receiver will miss at least the opener and possibly more games.

Shepard had been interviewed about the NCAA's ongoing investigation into the relationship that scouting services provider and purported street agent Willie Lyles has had with a number of college football programs, including both LSU and Oregon.

Earlier this summer, Steve Kragthorpe, who was hired after last season as the Tigers' new offensive coordinator, announced he had Parkinson's disease. He has remained on staff as quarterbacks coach, but relinquished offensive coordinator duties. Miles has since promoted offensive line coach Greg Studrawa to fill that void.